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Inset: Ashley Fagan (Columbus Division of Police). Background: The area in Columbus, Ohio where Fagan lived with and allegedly killed her daughter (Google Maps).
A 32-year-old mother in Ohio is facing decades behind bars for allegedly beating and strangling her 6-year-old daughter for weeks, ultimately killing the child in horrific fashion. Ashley Fagan was taken into custody and charged with on one count each of murder, involuntary manslaughter, and obstructing justice in connection with the slaying of young Eva Bretz, records show.
Fagan is also facing two counts each of permitting child abuse and endangering children in connection with a 1-year-old child who was the victim of “serious physical harm” between November and December 2023.
Officers with the Columbus Division of Police responded to a 911 call at a home located in the 4000 block of Migration Lane, Columbus, Ohio, on April 13, 2025, CBS affiliate WBNS reported. Upon arriving at the scene, first responders located Eva and immediately began lifesaving procedures.
Eva was transported to Nationwide Children’s Hospital, where she was admitted in critical condition. Per the report, the child was suffering from internal injuries — including a severed liver — and external injuries — including ligature marks around her neck — that doctors deemed to be life-threatening.
Unfortunately, Eva succumbed to her injuries and was pronounced dead about six hours after she was admitted to the hospital. The Franklin County Coroner’s Office performed an autopsy and reportedly determined that Eva’s manner of death was a homicide.
A copy of the coroner’s report obtained by The Columbus Dispatch provided additional details about Eva’s death, reportedly concluding that the 6-year-old was likely subjected to severe physical abuse for several weeks or even months before she ultimately died. Tests showed that the child also had fentanyl in her system and was the victim of sexual assault prior to her death.
In addition to the severed liver, Eva also sustained blunt force trauma to her abdomen. She had multiple fractures to her ribs and pelvis that were in different stages of healing, a telltale sign of ongoing abuse, police said.
According to the Dispatch, Fagan was arrested after she and her boyfriend, Blake Hutchinson, provided conflicting stories about how Eva sustained her fatal injuries. Hutchinson was also indicted in connection with Eva’s death, but killed himself just prior to authorities placing him under arrest, the Kansas City Star reported.
The indictment, a copy of which was obtained by the Dispatch, alleges that Eva’s injuries were the “proximate result of permitting the child to be abused, to be tortured, to be administered corporal punishment or other physical disciplinary measure, or to be physically restrained in a cruel manner or for a prolonged period.”
